CORNER BROOK Wouldn’t it be a shame to miss out on an opportunity to watch a future pro dangle as a kid.
The opportunity exists this weekend as the Corner Brook Minor Hockey Association plays host to the 2013 Bell Aliant Atlantic AAA Peewee Hockey Championship at the Pepsi Centre.
The best 11-12 year-old budding hockey players from the four Atlantic provinces will converge on the city this week as a 10-member host committee under the leadership of chairman Ron Downey take charge of taking care of the behind-the-scenes work to ensure all players have a memorable experience.
“Pretty well anybody who goes onto any level of hockey from Atlantic Canada have probably played in the peewee Atlantics,” Downey said Tuesday afternoon.
“That’s a stepping stone for a lot of players, regardless of what level of hockey they go onto.”
The Wolves, under head coach and Western Royals forward Mark Robinson, will be competing in a five-team single round-robin tournament with the top two teams squaring off in the gold-medal showdown Sunday 11 a.m. at the Pepsi Centre.
The Tri-Com Bulldogs will be Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador’s representative for the tournament, while the other participating teams include EDZA East of Hockey New Brunswick, the Truro Bearcats of Hockey Nova Scotia and the Summerside Capitals of Hockey Prince Edward Island.
Downey’s committee contains a lot of experienced hockey personnel who have no involvement with the host team so most of the workload is already being shared and under control, but Downey still welcomes people to give a helping hand to ensure everything runs smoothly.
He said the host committee wants to put off a good tournament and the support of the business community has been good with Bell Aliant, The Western Star and Colemans coming on board as the major sponsors of an event that will attract over 150 visitors to the city.
“We’ll need volunteers, whether they are from Corner Brook minor hockey or from the community in general, to do things like sell 50-50 and help out around the stadium,” he said.
“We’re always looking for volunteers to help out.”
Anybody who wishes to lend a helping hand contact Downey at 630-0029 or Corner Brook Minor Hockey Association president Paul Hicks at 634-9918.
The tournament gets underway Thursday with the Tri-Com Bulldogs tangling with the Truro Bearcats 2 p.m. at the Pepsi Centre.
The Bears will provide the opposition for the Wolves in its tournament opener 7:30 p.m. Thursday following the opening ceremonies expected to start at 7 p.m.
